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Trillia IX
Trillia IX is part of the Igliza system in Hex #0209. As the homeworld of The Trilliant Ring, this planet is not officially part of the Empire, but sees frequent visitors from all the Imperial Houses. The planet is also known for the extreme dichotomy between its artificial ring and its surface. Trillia IX has an artificial planetary ring - known sometimes as the Inner Circle - which is one of Acheron Rho's hottest and most selective tourism destinations. The ring hosts a megacity, dotted with pleasure domes and a dizzying array of artificial climates. Despite its low population, strategic monopolies have attracted immense wealth to the planet, turning the Inner Circle into a place of ludicrous opulence and luxury. The surface - known colloquially as the Sapphire - is a blasted, frozen hellscape that is almost completely uninhabitable. Temperatures can drop as low as -200 degrees Celsius, making climate controls necessary for survival. Regular energy blasts from the ring have also heavily irradiated the surface. While only a handful of research stations exist on the surface, there are remnants of habitation blocks and lost cities that were annihilated in the Scream. This makes the surface a research frontier for the Trilliant Ring and a font of technological re-discovery for those prepared to handle its inhospitable environment. History Before the Scream While most historical records of the planet have been lost to the annals of time, it is believed that the planet was highly populated before the Scream. Evidence of former settlements can be found, both underneath the sheets of ice that cover most of the surface, as well as on artificial satellites that were in close orbit above the planet. Ancient terraforming devices kept habitation blocks warm in alcoves under the ice and may have been in the process of thawing the surface. During the Scream the artificial satellites in orbit around Trillia crashed violently to the surface. Some of these destroyed or irreparably damaged the terraformers, while others smashed massive craters into the ice, blasting holes into many of the habitation blocks. However the events unfolded, the result was that the planetary climate controls became inoperable and the planet's population was wiped out. Reconnection Trillia IX was officially reconnected to the Acheron Rho navigation grid in 2788 by House Vela, though it remained on the uninhabited periphery of the sector for quite some time. The planet itself went unexplored until 2920 when a private expedition to the planet arrived and began uncovering troves of pretech cached under the frozen surface. The scale of the discovery was unheard of, with many of the explorers questioning the implications of revealing this technology to the public. The group, known in Trilliant Ring lore as "The Founders," made a decision to keep this discovery a secret from the outside world. Citing a potential nano-machine outbreak, a permanent research base was established and the planet was placed under strict quarantine. Research Post Igliza was created as a cover operation while the researchers set about unearthing and chronicling these pretech findings in a controlled environment. Using the advanced technology they discovered, the Founders were able to dramatically extend their natural lives and began work on a new base of operations above the planet's surface. Stories even implicate that some of the Founders may have been Trillian natives who had been sealed in the pretech habitation blocks. Founding of The Trilliant Ring Over the course of the next century and with numerous pretech secrets at their disposable, the Founders began enticing some of the sector's finest creative minds to Trillia IX. House Triangulum researchers, Fornax architects, Cygnus bio-engineers, and other aspiring minds from across the Empire were asked to assist with resolving the "nano-quarantine" situation. Once on the planet, these individuals were inducted into the Trilliant Ring. The organization is intensely secretive about its founding and what exactly happened during this period of time. Little is known about what was done with dissenters or who exactly was asked to join. Given the expedition was so far from Imperial concern and had begun close to a century ago, record of the expedition fell from living memory. Few asked questions about the planet and spotty record-keeping meant that it was nearly impossible to trace its origins to a supposedly failed expedition launched 90 years prior. By 3014, the first segment of Trillia IX's planetary ring was launched and the Trilliant Ring officially incorporated. Through a series of aggressive lobbying efforts, promotional Life-Extension Therapies, technological bribes, and intensive marketing across the sector the organization quickly grew to become a staple of Imperial commerce. Their unbridled access to pretech and its scientific advantage gave them a leg up over their competition, allowing them to establish several market monopolies, especially around Life-Extension. Today, the Trilliant Ring's operations have become so indispensable that most nobles couldn't imagine a sector without them. Geography Planetary Ring A massive artificial ring circles the equator of Trillia IX, orbiting high above the surface of the world and providing a living space and base of operations for The Trilliant Ring. This ring, known as the Inner Circle, is a multi-functional construction that provides artificial gravity, connects various habitation structures/luxury yachts/pleasure domes, serves as a primary transportation network, and even functions as a gigantic particle accelerator. The core of this ring is known as the Lightway. It is composed of two thin beams of energy that appear to be made of radiant light, surrounded by a transparent enclosure close to 20 meters in diameter. While these beams together are no more than a few meters thick, they are composed of ultra-dense particles which are rotating in opposite directions. These beams provide the station with an inner gravitational field and make them incredibly dangerous to interact with. By using a device known as a Light Bridge, an individual, vehicle, or even structure outside the enclosure can hitch itself to a Lightway beam to begin accelerating along either direction of the planetary ring. This allows for rapid transit across the Inner Ring and makes it possible to reconfigure the massive array of customized pleasure domes and floating structures to their tenant's needs. Outlandish exploration habitats, pleasure domes, floating casinos, exotic restaurants, and commercial centers can be effortlessly relocated around the ring and brought directly to paying clientele. Any unprotected object that enters the enclosure is typically destroyed and becomes part of rapidly spinning detritus. Specialized, shielded pods inside the enclosure are used to transport goods without disrupting or endangering nearby structures. Certain thrill seekers have also been known to navigate and race inside the enclosure using customized vehicles. Generally these events are highly televised, including the now (in)famous Trillia Grand Prix. Planet Surface can help by expanding this section. Beneath the Surface can help by expanding this section. Locations Trilliant HQ can help by expanding this section. Rosewood Jungle Habitation can help by expanding this section. Research Post Igliza can help by expanding this section. Shining Wastes When the Trilliant Ring has decided a device will no longer serve its purpose or a furnishing is no longer in fashion they will send the item to the Airing Chamber, a place where all waste is let fall to the planet below. There, far beneath the golden towers and inward turned belvedere of the Inner Circle is spread the Shining Wastes, glimmering with the castoff regalia and bygone mechanica of Trillia's past. The Shining Wastes are where Trillia's centuries of brilliant detritus have collected and ossified into a shimmering frozen wasteland of gilt steel and chrome. They are alight with the history of Trilliant industry and lifestyle. Grand ancient forges and fabrication looms rest long upon on the ground, broken and glazed in irradiated rime. Venerable pleasure yachts sag wrecked and twisted, their bones splayed to the sky. Glowing alabaster ionic fluid dribbles from cracked energy cells to collect and pool in crevasses. This amalgamation of esoteric technology and debris has resulted in many strange phenomena. Vast arcs of lightning flash from the top of one metal edifice to another. Large pieces of heavy scrap will hover a few feet off the ground for decades with no discernible impetus. Beams of heavy light meander through glittering ruins, appearing and disappearing seemingly without cause. As one of the few sources of heat on the blasted surface of Trillia IX, a few mad fools venture there on occasion, searching for discarded prototypes, precious materials, and unobtainable tools. However, they more usually find death and a ready made tomb of beauteous ruin. Population Trillia Natives can help by expanding this section. The Trilliant Ring can help by expanding this section. Visitors & Tourists can help by expanding this section. Events Trillia Grand Prix Main article: Trillia Grand Prix. (Link needed) The Trillia Grand Prix is an annual race that takes place on the Lightway of the planetary ring orbiting Trillia IX. This event is Trillia’s single largest tourist attraction and is widely broadcast throughout the sector for those who lack the substantial funds necessary to attend in-person. The Grand Prix is a multi-day event which features several races of varying speeds. All normal transportation within the planetary ring is suspended during the Grand Prix, and highly-specialized single-occupant racing vehicles are attached to the Lightway via customized Light Bridge. The nature of the Lightway allows for more freedom, creativity, and maneuverability than traditional racing. Due to the extremely high speeds at which these vehicles travel, crashes - resulting either from collision with another vehicle or a driver’s loss of control - are very common and always fatal. Because of the highly-specialized nature of both the vehicles and the raceway itself, the overwhelming majority of drivers chosen to participate in the Grand Prix are Trillia natives or cybernetically enhanced. When a fatality inevitably occurs, the vehicle(s) and driver(s) involved in the crash are destroyed and become part of the debris inside the ring. Shortly after the conclusion of each year’s Grand Prix, The Trilliant Ring marks the approximate spot where a crash occurred with a small memorial to the driver(s) who were lost, and sections of the Lightway are identified using the names of those who have perished there. As with any Trilliant Ring activity, there is a significant focus on how credits can be made. Most noble Houses and major corporations "compete" in the Trillia Grand Prix through patronage. By sponsoring specific racers and building a better, faster, more agile vehicles - and drivers - organizations can rake in acclaim and advertising opportunities. Betting on the results of the Grand Prix is also a favorite pastime of the nobility - both those who are able to attend in-person and those who watch from off-world. The Trilliant Ring is happy to act as a broker for these bets, accepting wagers on both the anticipated winners and on which drivers will not survive the race. Particle Accelerator Blast In addition to maintaining Trillia IX's planetary ring, the Lightway was made with another purpose in mind: the production of artificial Trillium. The production process releases an enormous amount of radiant energy and is magnificent to behold. Despite the danger, it has become a tourist attraction in its own right. In order to produce industrial quantities of Trillium - a material that is otherwise incredibly rare in Acheron Rho - the Lightway's two main beams are bent together until they collide. The collision releases massive amounts of energy and generates Trillium through ion implantation. The blast releases a wave of dazzling, multi-colored light visible across most of the Igliza system. Speakers and holograms issue a planet-wide alert ahead of an incoming blast. Visitors are directed to watch the ensuing blast from inside, as the planet quickly becomes bathed in light. Due to the intensity of such an event, it has been integrated into the tourist appeal of the planet. Occurring once every few months, particle accelerator blasts are timed to dazzle groups of newcomers and have become a seasonal attraction. It is traditional to perform a blast at the closing ceremonies of the Trillia Grand Prix. This energy is a serious threat to the unprepared. The blast is capable of annihilating or irradiating unprotected ships, facilities, or pleasure domes - even as far as the planet's surface or close orbit. The Trilliant Ring must relocate unshielded ships behind dedicated energy absorption emplacements. Specific shield configurations are broadcast across the system so to protect luxury yachts and other visiting ships from danger. Facilities attached to the Lightway must be reoriented so that their specialized protective surfacing faces the ring, shutting down movement between facilities for roughly an hour. For several days after a blast, the radiation creates a beautiful corona around Trillia IX, part of the planet's trademark sapphire glow. While it makes it immensely dangerous to walk the planet's surface, its lack of habitability makes this a moot point. Trillia Cruise Lines can help by expanding this section. Planet Tags Altered Humanity The humans on this world are visibly and drastically different from normal humanity. They may have additional limbs, new sensory organs, or other significant changes. Were these from ancestral eugenic manipulation, strange stellar mutations, or from an environmental toxin unique to this world? Enemies * Biochauvinist local * Local experimenter * Mentally unstable mutant Friends * Local seeking a "cure" * Curious xenophiliac * Anthropological researcher Complications * Alteration is contagious * Alteration is necessary for long-term survival * Locals fear and mistrust non-local humans Things * Original pretech mutagenic equipment * Valuable biological byproduct from the mutants * "Cure" for the altered genes * Record of the original colonial genotypes Places * Abandoned eugenics laboratory * An environment requiring the mutation for survival * A sacred site where the first local was transformed Flying Cities Perhaps the world is a gas giant, or plagued with unendurable storms at lower levels of the atmosphere. For whatever reason, the cities of this world fly above the surface of the planet. Perhaps they remain stationary, or perhaps they move from point to point in search of resources. Enemies * Rival city pilot * Tech thief attempting to steal outworld gear * Saboteur or scavenger plundering the city's tech Friends * Maintenance tech in need of help * City defence force pilot * Meteorological researcher Complications * Sudden storms * Drastic altitude loss * Rival city attacks * Vital machinery breaks down Things * Precious reined atmospheric gases * Pretech grav-engine plans * Meteorological codex predicting future storms Places * Underside of the city * The one calm place on the planet's surface * Catwalks stretching over unimaginable gulfs below Pleasure World This world provides delights either rare or impermissible elsewhere. Matchless local beauty, stunningly gengineered natives, a wide variety of local drugs, carnal pleasures unacceptable on other worlds, or some other rare delight is readily available here. Most worlds are fully aware of the value of their offerings, and the prices they demand can be in credits or in less tangible recompense. Enemies * Purveyor of evil delights * Local seeking to control others with addictions * Offworlder exploiter of native resources Friends * Tourist who's in too deep * Native seeking a more meaningful life elsewhere * Offworld entertainer looking for training here Complications * A deeply repugnant pleasure is offered here by a culture that sees nothing wrong with it * Certain pleasures here are dangerously addictive * The prices here can involve enslavement or death * The world has been seized and exploited by an imperial power Things * Forbidden drug * A contract for some unspeakable payment * Powerful tech repurposed for hedonistic ends Places * Breathtaking natural feature * Artful but decadent salon * Grimy den of desperate vice Orbitals Jeans 7 - a nearby refueling station - is also in orbit within the Igliza system. Category:Planets Category:Igliza Category:The Trilliant Ring